Chapter 634

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Long Xi Yue finished washing her clothes and entered the small building; she rarely went out normally, and although she heard the bustling voices outside, she did not know what had happened. Upon hearing Hu Xiaotian say that Tang Qingxuan and the others had arrived, Long Xi Yue also felt delighted, but immediately she also felt a bit worried, for she had already disguised herself like this and certainly could not meet Tang Qingxuan. What's more troublesome is, if Tang Qingxuan sees Zi Juan, then she will know that the current Princess Anping is an impostor, and it's unknown what trouble might arise.

Hu Xiaotian said: "Xi Yue, I want you to go to Treasure Abundance Hall to lay low for a while."

Long Xi Yue said: "I won't go!"

Hu Xiaotian laughed: "I'm not telling you to leave, but to avoid meeting Tang Qingxuan as much as possible; women are usually far more sensitive than men, I don't want her to discover anything. Anyway, if you go there, we can still see each other every day."

Long Xi Yue said: "All right!" She bit her cherry lips.

Hu Xiaotian saw her gaze dim, approached her, opened his arms and embraced her, softly comforting: "In short, I promise you, whenever I have time I will come see you; if you're willing, I will still come each night to keep you company while you sleep, okay?"

Long Xi Yue's pretty face flushed, she twisted her delicate body in Hu Xiaotian's embrace, and whispered: "I find myself useless; I originally knew nothing, and can't help you at all."

Hu Xiaotian laughed: "Silly girl, you know a lot; you just haven't realized your own abilities yet."

What abilities do I have?

Hu Xiaotian cupped her face and laughed: "For example, giving birth!"

Long Xi Yue bit her cherry lips again, flung herself into Hu Xiaotian's embrace, pounding his chest: "You're bad, you're terribly bad!" When a woman says a man is bad, her heart is usually filled with extreme love.

Hu Xiaotian smiled with satisfaction; to have such a beauty's favor, what more could one ask for in this life?

Liang Yinghao's arrival delighted Hu Xiaotian; he decided to prepare in advance, digging a secret passage inside the South Wind Inn for emergencies, Liang Yinghao hails from the Hushui Gang of Fenglin Valley, and he has a talent for digging tunnels that others cannot match.

After receiving this task from Hu Xiaotian, Liang Yinghao immediately began selecting a site; after confirming the plan, he started digging, choosing the starting point in the small building where Hu Xiaotian lives.

As they came to understand the situation in all aspects, the general state of Yongdu began to emerge. Having arrived in Yongdu, they didn't notice six days had passed; it was nearly March, and only half a month remained until the princess's grand wedding, yet the Da Yong imperial household still had not formally received this marriage envoy from Dakang.

Hu Xiaotian was neither anxious nor impatient. That evening, he, Xiao Tianmu, Zhou Mo, and Zhan Peng gathered in Treasure Abundance Hall to discuss the next plan together.

On the table before Xiao Tianmu lay a spread map of the Huangcheng of Da Yong; Hu Xiaotian picked up the map and took a look.

Xiao Tianmu said: "The matter has basically been clarified; the princess is to be placed in Qixing Palace. Deliberately concealing the envoy's arrival in Yongdu was the idea of Consort Shu and her son. Consort Shu's maiden surname is Dong; her older brother Dong Bingtai is the Minister of Personnel in Da Yong, and the Dong family has served in office generation after generation in Da Yong. Their influence at court is immense, and the only family that can be compared to them is the Li family—namely, the former Da Yong chancellor Li Xuan'gan. Li Xuan'gan died fifteen years ago; his eldest son Li Mingshu inherited the title of Marquis of Jingguo. Although Li Mingshu's abilities are not as great as his father's, he is skilled at handling all kinds of relations and is highly favored by the emperor. By the third generation of the Li family, another outstanding figure has emerged."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Li Chen Zhou?"

Xiao Tianmu nodded: "Not bad, it's Li Chen Zhou; third brother, you should have already dealt with him before."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Li Chen Zhou is no ordinary person; he is very guarded toward people. Although I came here with him all the way from the Nan Yang Water Stronghold, I still don't know much about him. Could he also have been bribed by Consort Shu? Yet regarding our envoy's arrival in Yongdu, he hasn't mentioned a word."

Xiao Tianmu said: "The marriage alliance with Dakang was the empress's idea, and the Da Yong emperor nodded in agreement. Previously, Consort Shu wanted her son to marry the daughter of Grand Tutor Xiang, in order to consolidate the Dong family's position at court and thus give Seventh Prince Xue Daoming a strong supporter, hoping he would eventually ascend to the crown prince position. Grand Tutor Xiang actually had the same intention, but when he presented it to the Da Yong emperor, it was rejected. Do you know why?"

Hu Xiaotian thought and said: "It must be that Xue Shengkang considered that if the Dong and Xiang families intermarried, their combined power would be like adding wings to a tiger, which would be detrimental to his future rule."

Xiao Tianmu smiled: "Third brother, you are indeed a perceptive person; the emperor's thoughts are exactly like that, so he rejected Consort Shu's proposal and instead sought a marriage alliance with Dakang. Dakang's fortunes have waned, and facing such a situation, they naturally welcomed it; the marriage alliance was quickly agreed upon, and the only ones truly unhappy are Consort Shu and her son."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Whether they are happy or not, the Da Yong emperor's decision cannot be changed by them."

Zhou Mo said: "Could Li Chen Zhou also be on their side?"

Xiao Tianmu shook his head: "The Li family has always supported the Crown Prince Xue Daohong; I also find this puzzling. Logically, the Crown Prince's side should have received the news long ago, yet they have not shown up."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Perhaps they just want to watch Consort Shu and her son cause trouble, then after they have stirred things up, they will harshly present a complaint against them before the Da Yong emperor, thus effectively striking at their opponents."

Xiao Tianmu nodded: "Quite possible."

Zhan Peng said: "But then our situation would become very awkward; Princess Anping is under their control, and we cannot approach her. If Consort Shu and her son harbor ill intentions toward Princess Anping, wouldn't that be troublesome?"

Zhou Mo said: "Yes, I have been worried about this as well."

Xiao Tianmu and Hu Xiaotian said nothing, maintaining a tacit silence.

Although Xiao Tianmu is blind, when it comes to gauging Hu Xiaotian's thoughts, he is the most clear-headed. The Princess Anping in Qixing Palace is merely a counterfeit; Hu Xiaotian naturally does not care about her life or death. Even if Consort Shu and her son were to kill her, his brother might even feel relieved. With no evidence, a potential hidden danger would be eliminated. However, Hu Xiaotian probably does not want this counterfeit princess to die now; his ideal is to completely sever ties after her false wedding, leave Da Yong, and satisfactorily complete this mission.

Hu Xiaotian said: "There is still half a month until the wedding. Consort Shu and her son will surely have other moves; I worry they are targeting not only the princess but also us."

Zhou Mo stared in astonishment: "Third brother, what do you mean? Why would they target us? They've already driven us out of Qixing Palace; why would they still do such a thing?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "The current princess is just a burden; we want to get rid of her and push the responsibility onto the Da Yong side, and Consort Shu and her son are the same. I dare say they likewise want to push the burden onto us—in short, if something happens, who will bear the responsibility?"

Xiao Tianmu said: "Not bad, there is another possibility. Consort Shu and her son might want to push the responsibility onto the Crown Prince, thereby getting rid of trouble and striking at their opponents—why not?"

Zhou Mo said: "If that's the case, isn't the princess's situation like walking on thin ice? We have no one guarding her side; if anything happens, wouldn't that be troublesome?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "I've also been thinking about this these past two days; initially I wanted to bring her along when leaving, but she firmly refused."

Zhou Mo said: "This woman is also quite extraordinary."

Hu Xiaotian said: "She is the biggest variable among us."

Xiao Tianmu said: "Even if she truly aspires to rise to a branch and become a phoenix, I wouldn't fear that; I fear she may have ulterior motives."

Hu Xiaotian said: "In that case, perhaps I should return to Qixing Palace to keep an eye on her every move, to prevent her from causing trouble."

Zhan Peng said: "If she now causes trouble, it brings her no benefit at all; if the matter is exposed, the unlucky ones could be not just us."

Xiao Tianmu said: "Don't underestimate anyone; from the current situation, she should fully realize her own value. Before we clarify her true intentions, we might as well be more patient; only by finding her weakness can we get her to wholeheartedly cooperate with us."

Hu Xiaotian nodded: "I plan to start with Prince Yan, having him help memorialize this matter to the Da Yong emperor."

Zhou Mo curiously asked: "What illness does Prince Yan actually have?"

Hu Xiaotian chuckled: "A disease of wealth and status!"

The several people exchanged a knowing smile; men are naturally sensitive to such matters.

Zhan Peng said: "That Prince Yan is sinister and crafty; he's probably not easy to deal with."

"Even the craftiest fox cannot escape my rifle!" Hu Xiaotian was full of confidence; he still has some ways to deal with Prince Yan.

Xiao Tianmu said: "Why not go see the Empress Dowager?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "If unnecessary, we should still try not to bother the Empress Dowager; I don't want her to suspect my motives, nor do I want this affair to cause too much impact on the Divine Farmers Society."

Xiao Tianmu nodded; Hu Xiaotian's actions are indeed principled. Xiao Tianmu said: "Big brother, you will tell Xiao Tian the route we have discussed for our return."

Zhou Mo took out a map of the territories from beside him: "I and my second brother have studied this; to guard against long nights and many dreams, after the princess's wedding we will immediately leave Yongdu, head east to Hailing Commandery, about four hundred li by land, from there we can board a ship to go to sea; we will prepare merchant ships in advance at the port, sail south all the way to Dakang's Haizhou, land there; the greatest advantage of this route is first, we can avoid the strict inspections within Da Yong's borders, and second, we can bypass the northern rebellions in Dakang."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Taking the sea route is the most secure; I'll leave this to my second brother to arrange."

Xiao Tianmu said: "Treasure Abundance Hall happens to have a batch of porcelain to be transported to Kangdu; the connections there have long been opened, so at that time you can return together with the merchant ships. Just…" he trailed off.

Hu Xiaotian said: "Is my second brother worried that our envoy currently has too many personnel, so that at that time our target will be too large, and every move will attract attention?" (The novel "Medical Unification" will have more fresh content on the official WeChat platform, and there is also a 100% prize draw gift for everyone! Now open WeChat, click the "+" icon in the upper right corner "Add Friends", search for the public account "qdread" and follow, hurry up!) (To be continued~^~)